New Spotlight webinar on Tuesday 28 November at 6pm.
Join us to find out from expert Natalie Diamond about Mindfulness, Cognitive Hypnotherapy and Neuro Linguistic Programming and to understand how they can help self-esteem and confidence, especially with dyslexia.
The webinar will include practical tips and techniques that can be used every day to build confidence and create a positive self-image.
If you can’t join live, recordings will be sent out.
Book here.
A global day of giving.
Giving Tuesday is on 28 November and is a day that encourages people to do good. This may be through a donation of money, time or a community act. We know that times are difficult and this means that with every penny that is donated to us must work hard to help us help children and adults with dyslexia.
If you would like to be part of this, you can donate here, get fundraising ideas here and become a volunteer here.
Thank you from everyone at Helen Arkell.
Huge thanks to our magnificent Royal Parks Half Marathon runners!
They did an amazing job running on 8 October. It was a warm day which was lovely to hang around in but not so great for running. Between them, Ceri, Peter, James, Jackie and Daxa raised a fantastic £4,400 to help us support adults and children with dyslexia!
If you would like to run for us next year, please subscribe to our e-newsletter – this is where we announce applications for the next event.
On behalf of all of us at Helen Arkell Dyslexia Charity, I am absolutely thrilled to announce the launch of a new partnership with TV Dragon, Retail Entrepreneur and longstanding dyslexia champion Theo Paphitis and Ryman Retail Limited.
Together we will launch the Theo Paphitis Dyslexia Bursary, giving us the opportunity to offer free training to teachers and teaching assistants from state schools around the UK.
Starting with 50 free training spaces, the Theo Paphitis Dyslexia Bursary will enable the state school sector to take part in the Helen Arkell Dyslexia Charity’s six-week online Supporting Learners with Dyslexia course, free of charge for teachers or teaching assistants.
The aim of the Theo Paphitis Dyslexia Bursary is to particularly support state schools where there are young people from low-income families, by giving them access to the expertise and guidance of Helen Arkell Dyslexia Charity regarding the best ways to support young people with dyslexia.
Theo Paphitis said: “I am delighted to create the Theo Paphitis Dyslexia Bursary, supported by one of our key partners, the Helen Arkell Dyslexia Charity. Many have a story with dyslexia, either through their own story or someone close to them, and through this Bursary and further work in the dyslexia area we want to make sure that as many stories as possible are positive ones.”
Helen Arkell’s aim is to remove barriers to learning, employment and life for more and more people with dyslexia, regardless of ability to pay, and we are indebted to Theo Paphitis and Ryman for helping us to achieve this.
Andy Cook
CEO
*Please note: all 50 Theo Paphitis Dyslexia Bursary places have now been awarded.
Non bursary places are still available, but the normal fee will apply. Full details here.
Theo Paphitis and Andy Cook
We are now counting down to Dyslexia Awareness Week. This is the week in the year where we go even further to help people understand what dyslexia is, that there is effective support available and to explain the up- and down-sides of having dyslexia. If you can join us, we would love it!
The theme of this year’s Dyslexia Awareness Week is Uniquely You.
Look out for posts on our social media pages and for ways you can get involved.
Could you help spread the word about dyslexia?
Celebrate what makes people with dyslexia unique.
We would really love you to share your own unique dyslexia story in the form of a short video, lasting no longer than one minute. Look out for others’ films during the week on our social media channels.
You can use your mobile phone and let our community know what makes you you!
• Please email your video to: events@helenarkell.org.uk
• Share on social media using #DAW23 #Dyslexia #UniquelyYou #DyslexiaAwarenessWeek2023
Could you fundraise during the week?
Could younger members of your family do a sponsored one-mile run, a board game marathon, or sell homemade cakes to neighbours?
Or how about gathering your friends for a quiz night?
If you’re feeling daring, we can help you plan ahead and organise a sponsored skydive or wing walk!
Your fundraising will help even more people with dyslexia make sense of their life.
We’re here to help so drop us a line on fundraising@helenarkell.org.uk
Support our Royal Parks Half Marathon team
Our magnificent 7 Royal Parks Half Marathon runners are taking part in this race on Sunday 8 October.
Good luck to Ceri, Alice, Peter, James, Jackie, Gary and Daxa!
We’ll be there cheering you on!
Find out more about the team and support their incredible efforts here
Join a Spotlight Talk
Join our Spotlight talk on Thursday 5 October on How to be a Brilliant Dyslexic Student with Sarah J Myhill.
If you have any questions, email the team on events@helenarkell.org.uk.
Thank you!
Watch this space for DAW updates or sign up for our e-newsletter.
Join us in October for the 2023 Tes SEND Show! Andy, Claire, Rachael and Katherine will be at Stand 83, amongst many SEND exhibitors.
There will be opportunities to take part in forums, workshops, CPD-certified seminars.
The exhibition is aimed at parents. carers and education professionals and entry is free (some seminars are chargeable).
Friday 13 October 2023: 9:00am – 5:00pm
Saturday 14 October 2023: 10:00am – 4:00pm
Venue and travel:
The Business Design Centre, 52 Upper Street, London, N1 0QH
The Business Design Centre is located in the heart of Islington with easy access to and from central London by public transport.
Register here.
Sarah J Myhill, a Specialist Dyslexia Tutor and Lecturer at the University of Buckingham and author of Be a Brilliant Dyslexic Student, will be sharing her tried and tested, evidenced-based, study skill strategies which are visual and tailored to dyslexic students’ needs, encouraging them to learn how to work smarter, develop mind mapping, memory and concentration techniques and improve reading and writing skills.
She will explore the importance of working with dyslexic students’ strengths and the positive impact that tailored learning can have on a student both academically and personally, boosting confidence and motivation.
This live online session is aimed at students and their parents and will be held on Thursday 5 October from 6 pm with a recording available after.
It’s been a while since I jotted down a blog. Not for lack of things to say. Quite the opposite, actually. There’s just been so much going on, where do you start?
So maybe best just to focus on things that have taken place this week, and hope that somehow you’ve heard about the rest of the stuff from other sources, or maybe even from our own social media.
(On that note, I’ve reawakened my commitment to dip into LinkedIn more frequently, following our recent session with social media guru Fiona Service from Litus Digital. Are you on LinkedIn? If so, will you be my friend please?!).
This week our team have been as busy as ever, despite the holiday season, with a flurry of 1:1 assessments taking place around the country, and also online. In addition to assessments, our Farnham premises have also hosted 1:1 specialist teaching sessions with experts Ginny and Sally. Meanwhile, Claire has provided consultations over the phone to various parents who need some advice regarding the next step to take for their children.
Big news is the fact that our external Quality Assurance verifier has completed her evaluation of the coursework of our 55 candidates who have done their Level 5 and Level 7 Diplomas with us throughout the year. They (and we!) will all be waiting with bated breath to hear how they did, so there’ll be more news on that next week.
We all know that times are financially tough in the country at the moment, so we’re pleased to ‘do our bit’ by helping as many people as possible who are from lower-income backgrounds or struggling financially. So far this year we’ve already helped 450 people in this way, with the equivalent of over £230,000 of bursary-funded dyslexia support. A massive Thank You to all our brilliant donors for making it possible for us to do this, with donations big and small, transforming the lives of children and adults with dyslexia.
Of course, the main thing is to put everyone’s donations to good use, fulfilling our mission to remove barriers to learning, employment and life for people with dyslexia. So, I’ll finish with this note that came in this week from the parents of 15-year-old V:
‘We are sincerely grateful to Helen Arkell for your commitment to ensuring a thorough evaluation, as it has allowed us to take the necessary steps to support V.
Understanding his challenges and strengths through your assessment has been a turning point for our family. It has helped us comprehend his learning needs better and alleviated any feelings of guilt or uncertainty we may have had along the way. Once again, thank you for your invaluable contribution, and we truly appreciate all the effort and care Helen Arkell has put into this assessment, positively impacting V’s future.’
Thank you for playing your part in this big team effort!
Andy
Hannah and her team Royal Holloway University are studying reading enjoyment in adults with dyslexia to see whether a person will wait to read more of a book and other reading behaviours (eg comprehension, reading anxiety) in those with and without dyslexia.
Could you take part? The online task takes around 30 minutes.
Hannah is looking for:
Scan the QR code on the poster to go to the study, or click here.
Registered charity in England and Wales (1064646). A company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales, company number 3432423.
